It is known to feed materials to processing or working machines by means of collecting tongs which are operated by electromagnetically or by pneumatically operated hollow cylinders. These known devices are disadvantageous in as far as they are complicated in their structure and furthermore the feed paths are limited. Furthermore, no precise conveying movements can be achieved through these devices, for which reason work with small tolerances cannot be performed or high waste quotas must be accepted. The necessary precision in the movements cannot be achieved with the conventional devices due particularly to a slip-free conveying not being assured and to these devices carrying out uncontrollable movements in the starting phase and the ending phase of the drive motors, in particular during a sudden stop situation.
In addition, it is known to use conveyor belts for the continuous conveying of materials to working and processing machines. The desired precise movements are, however, also not assured as these are necessary in the case of many processes, for example in carrying out of spot welding. It is also not possible with the known belt conveyor devices to feed profiled long forms in a precise feeding manner to working or processing machines.
Finally it is also known to convey materials between an upper and a lower conveyor belt.
Further disadvantages of known devices consist in them not permitting a change in the conveying direction during operation and in them being very noisy due to the play in the joints and the repeated setting down of the jaws on the conveyed material.
Thus the basic purpose of the invention is to provide a conveying device in which the disadvantages, which the known device have, are avoided. This is inventively achieved by the conveyor belt and the holding-down device being supported by a lifting mechanism, a turning mechanism and a carriage so that they can be adjusted in their height and can be pivoted about an axis which is positioned perpendicularly on the plane of the belt and can be adjusted transversely with respect to the conveying direction of the belt and by preferably the conveyor belt and the holding-down device being coupled with one another by means of at least one pressure-medium-fed cylinder.
The rollers which have the conveyor belt looped around them are preferably supported in a frame which is held by the carriage and the guideway for the carriage is supported by the lifting cylinder.
According to further preferred characteristics, the holding-down device is formed by at least one press roll. It can thereby be formed by at least one bar which is constructed with guide and press rolls. In addition, it can be pivotal about a pin which is positioned normally in the plane of the conveyor belt.
In addition, it is possible to provide on the shaft of the driven roller for the conveyor belt a coupling, an advance block and a return block, in addition on the feed side a material-receiving device with a receiving roller, a wiper and a sensor and on or in the machine frame a feed pump for the lifting cylinder and control devices.